Chapter 3

Johnny Come Lately

Johnny casually walked down the hall after his last class of the day, heading toward the Great Hall for his well-earned dinner. His mind started wandering back to the events of the last few days, all the sound and fury surrounding the explosions. Of course all the excitement had melted away rather quickly and he hadn't thought of it again until just now. It was a little perplexing to him why everyone got so worked up over it, and still was by all accounts.

"...injuries were so intense, I don't know how she survived. Not to mention the evidence of the years of abuse. The utter neglect is unbelievable. It's like she came from a war zone!" The voice of Professor Colton came wafting out of a passing classroom and it caught Johnny's ear so he slowed down out of curiosity.

"Yes, that is quite shocking. And who is she? And where did she come from? We don't even know that basic information." The voice of Professor Trillaby, the herbology professor came floating out. At this, Johnny was struck. Who are they talking about? Johnny slid to the wall and faded into an alcove where he might be able to hear more.

Professor Colton obliged. "Professor Weasley will try waking her up in the next day or so, so hopefully we should find out soon. Including, hopefully, how she and that monster got into the school in the first place." Johnny's stomach dropped to the floor. This was the girl from the hall? She wasn't from Hogwarts? His brain skipped a few beats. He thought that particular excitement was over and gone.

"Yes, quite worrying. All the wards and protections of the castle seemed as nothing, especially since she seems to have no magic. I just don't understand," professor Trillaby sighed.

"I agree. I suppose there's nothing to it but to wait. I'm sure Professor Weasley will get the answers. After all, she helped defeat Voldemort," Professor Colton said confidently. "Well, I should be getting to my duties." Johnny took that as his cue and hurried down the hall, not waiting for Professor Trillaby to add his pleasantries. His mind was awhirl. He had no idea, hadn't even thought twice about it. Somehow, he didn't understand how, this fragment of conversation had shaken his world. It was not so comfortable any more.

As he got close to the Great Hall he turned aside and kept going toward the Infirmary. He wanted to know what happened. But how could he find out? Well... just ask, I suppose. He walked into the Infirmary and said, "Nurse Mason?" No answer. Maybe she went for dinner. He started to amble down the rows of beds looking for something, even though he had no idea what.

"Mr. Travers? How can I help you?" Nurse Mason popped out of her office and asked.

"Uhm ... well, I wanted to know about the girl that I brought here after the explosions. How is she?"

Nurse Mason paused and stared at Johnny with a concerned look, evidently considering how to answer. Eventually she said quietly "she is not good Mr. Travers."

Johnny's stomach fell yet again. "What happened to her?"

"We don't know very much, yet." Nurse Mason spoke softly with uncharacteristic emotion.

"Who is she?"

Nurse Mason seemed to come back to herself, her brisk manner slowly returning. "You'll have to ask Professor Weasley about that. You should hurry off to dinner before you miss it." A bit of a soft smile lingering.

"Yes, thank you Nurse Mason." Johnny headed back toward the door and on to the Great Hall, his hunger having returned in force.

Professor Weasley

Professor Weasley was perplexed that her attempts at legillimency on the girl from nowhere lead nowhere. She was blank. Professor Weasley could sense almost nothing from the girl's mind. They will have to wake her up a little farther and try again. Fortunately, her other wounds are almost all healed as well, so beginning the process of waking her up is appropriate. Tomorrow.

Johnny

Johnny walked distractedly into the Great Hall in a vague search for dinner. His thoughts still swirling around this strange unknown girl. What did Professor Colton call her, the girl from nowhere? He hadn't paid any attention to the wild, ridiculous, rumours that flew around the school; most of them were usually rubbish. But now he considered how much rubbish. He thought he should ask about them again and see.

"Johnny! Hows the craic, man?" Jamison said while sitting down next to him.

"Um - momentous?"

"Ochk. Hopeless!" Jamison shook his head, then looked at him again. "What's with you? Mistook the Haggis again?"

Geary came and sat down next to Johnny, his almost shoulder-length brown hair sweeping in front of his face as his tall frame barely folded into the bench. Johnny was still quite distracted, "What? No, no. I was just thinking –"

"Whoa, careful there..." Geary said with fear.

"– About that girl." Johnny tried to be casual.

"A girl, huh. When did this start and who is she?" Jamison said sounding like a cat eyeing a bird.

Johnny gave a frown, "The one caught in the explosions a few days ago."

"What? You're after her? We don't even know who she is," Jamison smirked.

"Yes, that's what Professor Colton said," Johnny said, still too distracted to notice what Jamison was implying.

Jamison paused mid-bite and fixed his eyes on Johnny, "wha?". Food distorting his words. He gulped, "the professors don't even know who she is? Isn't she a student?"

"I overheard some professors talking and they seemed to suggest that she'd come from a war zone or been tortured - badly."

"She's not a student? How the bloody hell did she get in the school?" Geary blurted out.

"Oh, man. I wonder if some of the rumors are actually true," Jamison looked worried.

"What rumors are those? I haven't been paying any attention to them," Johnny was now quite focused.

Geary was the first to react, "One rumor had more than one monster in the hall. Another had 10 people in the hall. One said it was terrorists."

"Yea, terrorists - like Death Eater's great-grand-kids," Jamison said derisively.

"There was one story – from Bundy was it? He said the monster kicked a girl and then there was the explosion and then everything disappeared. Some rumors gave an explanation for the monsters, but I don't think anyone actually knows what the monsters are. But again, how did the one monster actually get in the school? How did that arm get in here? No one seems to be very worried about that one, except me," Geary said in a very sober tone.

After a pause, Jamison continued, "Yes, and now you're saying that there was a mystery girl who came in with the monster."

"I think Professor Colton called her 'the girl from nowhere'. She didn't look any older than we are," Johnny said with a concerned frown. "After the explosion, her clothes looked shredded. I thought it was a result of the explosion, but maybe not. I didn't even think about it at the time."

"Hi Guys!" Amanda Reeves came over, sitting down next to Jamison, her long dark hair bound into a black velvet covered clasp at the back of her neck. She was taller than Johnny but not as tall as Jamison or Geary. And very pretty with a very open smile, and light blue eyes. "What's with the long faces? Oh, not the Haggis again."

They all laughed. Johnny confided, "No, we were a little concerned about the girl in the Infirmary. Evidently no one knows who she is, not even the Professors."

"Ah, yes, some very interesting questions there," Amanda said quietly.

Johnny looked up, "You know something, don't you. How?"

"Maybe," she said.

"Ok, I'll bite, what?" Jamison challenged.

Amanda's voice lowered even more and they all leaned in to hear, "They don't know who she is. They've kept her under sedation until she's physically healed because they're not sure she's sane. They've never seen anything like the monster in the hall, including all the symbols on the arm. They have no idea how either the girl or the monster got in to the school, and thus no idea how to keep it out. There were no traces of magic or chemical residue in the Main Hall or the infirmary, yet two very large explosions tore both places apart. The girl shows evidence of torture or other violence over a long period of time. They are going to try to wake her up tomorrow morning. Anything else you wanted to know?"

"How the hell do you know all that!?" Johnny looked ready to blow a gasket.

"Oh, you just have to know who to talk to and how to listen. I am in Slytherin, after all." She smiled sweetly.